Euri's Quad-Gunner guide (work-in-progress)
Greetings. This is Euridious, and welcome to my 4-gunner strategy for Stick ranger. In this strategy, we will be using four different character setups, based upon the weapon they are using. In this case, we will be using handguns, submachine-guns, rifles, and shotguns. All the weapons we will be using are BULLET weapons. The elemental laser weapons, while still being handguns, will not be covered in this guide as well as the other weapons. So far, each character is permitted to use five weapons, each of an escalating tier. SETUP The handgunner's setup is rather straight-forward. Handguns are high-powered weapons which have a moderate fire rate, and we boost both those traits with aplomb. Skill points should be placed within all four options, primarily STR. MAG is best invested in when you are anticipating an upcoming weapon, and DEX is preferably worked on every 2 or 3 levels. LP is not exactly as fruitful as it is with most other classes, as you only gain 8 such points for every SP you invest in it. Anyway, the weapons the Handgunner is permitted to use in this strategy are; * Gun * Handgun 1 * Beretta 3 * 3 Round Burst 5 * Magnum 7 Spend the first four SP you earn on MAG. The moment you earn yourself the Handgun, is one where the game goes far more smoothly. The cost of firing said weapon will only be one gold per bullet, should you have invested into MAG early on. Green, white, and red stones should all be combined with the Handgun as soon as possible, with whatever combination you wish. Even the Iron Medal can be of use, here, especially considering you may want to reliably boost the levels gained by your Handgunner's weaker brethren. Avoid the blue stones unless you cannot cover for the weapon's firing cost, or if it is greater than one gold per shot. Ideally, your compo item selection should revolve around dealing damage. Green stones, red stones, yellow crystals, red crystals, and Critical's cards are all welcomed additions. We can reliably invest in damage principally because the shotgunner and submachine-gunner should be quite beefy, and have the ability to take a lot of damage. Add protective items should you wish, and any other items except jewels and spirits. Avoid jewels unless you are using the elemental handguns on offer. Even then, topaz and rubies are all you would want to use anyway. We are avoiding use of the fire elemental laser guns entirely because of its range. 50 range is the same as the shotguns and SMGs, and we want to dish out a lot of damage while not taking a lot at the same time. The homing laser, or lightning weapons, have 70 range, so your handgunner can take an approach like that as well. If you are still stubborn about equipping the laser guns, then at least spend your skill points in the same manner as that of the shotgunner. After the Hangun 1, comes the Beretta 3. The Beretta is a greatly strengthened Hangun, offering far more damage per shot. The damage boost is welcome, and you should find your handgunner dealing roughly as much damage as your sniper. After that comes another upgrade, the 3 Round Burst 5 pistol. Statistics are basically the same as the Beretta 3's, but this pistol fires three bullets in succession at the cost of one, again tripling the firepower. After this pistol comes the ultimate; The Magnum 7. The Magnum is the highest-tier pistol available, and after getting enough magic for this pistol, you should focus all you can on damage and health. SETUP The SMG gunner is given a fast-firing weapon that can deal a lot of damage in a short space of time. While initial damage-per-shot is comparatively smaller, the rate of fire is monstrous, and the later weapon upgrades fire more than one bullet at once. Range is not ideal, at just 50. This means that because we have a class who will be in the thick of it, we should focus on survival, and as much lead output as possible. The SMG gunner can use the four spam-tastic options, along with the starting pistol; * Gun * Submachine-gun 1 * Uzi 3 * Mini Uzi 5 * Micro Uzi 7 As we do not earn the SMG in Opening street, feel free to invest in whatever you wish EXCEPT DEX. DEX is the one trait you should avoid at all costs with the SMG gunner, given their leveled weapons already fire at the maximum speed of 5-10, and will thus only benefit the starting pistol. STR, MAG, and LP are all far better options when building your SMG class. As this character will find itself in close quarters combat, it is crucial that you invest in STR and LP primarily. Invest in MAG when you're trying to reduce what will, or is the cost of your bullet hose. Red Stones, white stones, red crystals, Critical's cards, Bullet's cards, and black/purple/grey crystals are all welcomed to the submachine-gunner's weapon. Red and white stones increase damage, and/or health, and Critical's and Bullet's cards increase overall damage output (by varying amounts). The defensive crystals are all useful for soaking up damage, a useful trait given that the SMG gunner is typically found in the fray, and being forced to take a lot of damage. This can be a good alternative to the damage-enhancing compo item for the perfect "Tough guy" class, or a balanced mix of both damage and survival, spending time on your character's LP for health, and a crystal for reducing damage. If you choose to use the Bullet's card, try to use only the 1st, 2nd, 5th level cards. You benefit just as well, if not better from these cards than the percentage-based ones, as you'll gain an extra 1, 2, and 6 bullets for these levels. A percentage boost may only give you one or two extra bullets when you can get the cheaper level 1 and 2 cards easier. The Micro-Uzi shoots three bullets by default, and the grand total of 9 bullets per shot is a brilliant method of making the SMG's voracious appetite prove its worth as a bullet hose. As mentioned previously, as tempting as it is, do not invest into DEX. DEX will only help the starting pistol, and not the later SMGs. Instead, put 4 points into MAG, and the rest into LP and STR. Once the SMG is collected, if you do not already have a steady income, try not to equip the SMG right away. Instead, it is wise to equip it during the boss fight and beyond. That extra damage can really make the difference. After the SMG comes the Uzi, which is basically a higher-damage upgrade. The penultimate Mini Uzi has the same damage per shot, but fires two bullets instead, and the final Micro Uzi both increases damage, and adds an extra bullet. Strategy remains the same, but the incredibly valuable Bullet's card 6 is definitely a worthwhile addition. SETUP The shotgunner is given a weapon that is slow-firing, but can offer a very large amount of damage. Shotguns fire multiple projectiles, with the number fired increasing as the weapon level increases, as well as the total amount of damage per individual projectile. Shotguns are indeed weapons of immediate blasts of power, unlike consistent damage of the pistols and SMGs. Like lightning attacks, this shotgun can deal a large amount, or very little damage in a single blast, with between 1 and any maximum amount being the norm. The Shotgunner can use the following weapons: * Gun * Shotgun 1 * Remington 3 * Scattergun 5 * Triple Shotgun 7 Much like the SMG and rifle, we do not earn the Shotgun in Opening Street, but we also do not get it until Grassland 2. The second stage shotgun is relatively easy to earn; The enemy is a brown smiley walker, and drops are relitavely common, unlike the submachine-gun. Every SP is valuable here, as the shotguns have the largest cost per shot compared to the other weapons at the same level. All the stones, all the crystals, percentage-based Bullet's cards, and Critical's cards are typically the best options for shotguns. Bullet's cards that are percentage-based make a far greater difference compared to the ones that offer a fixed amount of extra projectiles, these being the level 3, 4, 6, and 7 cards. Charms are great in preparation of magical attacks, and any other compo item can work, as long as you prioritize health. Much like the SMG gunner, this character will be in the thick of it, usually soaking up all the damage. The stones remain effective with the Shotgunner, particularily the white and green stones. Pair the shotgun with a green stone and Critical's card, for example, to dramatically increase LP, fire rate, and overall damage per blast. This can be very helpful when choosing what composition items you want for the shotgunner. The jewels are entirely impractical. Even though the previously mentioned lightning-esque damage may seem tempting to add a topaz, it simply will not provide any benefit. Charms are a far better option, or the defensive crystals/white stone, due to the increased ability to avoid death, and soak up damage. The first shotgun on offer deals 1-20 damage per shot, and fires five projectiles, equating to 5-100 damage per blast. Red stones are a brilliant first addition, but you'll likely find yourself needing a blue stone to mitigate the cost. The next shotgun is the Remington, a far greater weapons which has higher damage-per-shot, and more projectiles upon firing, damage being 1-40 for individual projectiles, and 7-280 per shot. The Scattergun's projectiles reflect off terrain, leading to more consistant performance with 1-80 damage for individual projectiles, and a massive 9-720 damage overall. At this point, if damage is invested in enough, you should see your minimum damage increase. Finally, the Triple Shotgun deals a massive 1-120 damage per projectiles, and a monstrous 15-1800 per full blast. Pair this with a Bullet's card six for a default total damage of 33-3 960. Little else can touch the potential damage of this weapon SETUP The Sniper is the high-damage ranger on the team, who usually sits back and takes less damage compared to their brethren. The rifle fires single, moderately fast, and has high-damage bullets that resemble real rifle bullets. The single, fast travelling shot also has far better range, making the Sniper a brilliant support gunner, taking on threats from afar. The Sniper's weapons are... * Gun * Rifle 1 * Sniper Rifle 3 * Hunting Gun 5 * Rail Gun 7 Outside the handgun, we do not get the Sniper's first weapon of choice right away in Opening Street. In fact, the Rifle 1 is the last of the other gunners' weapons found. Thankfully, the green smiley trees on the fifth Grassland stage are very common, meaning your ranged companion can get to grips within the first stage of Grassland 5. Outside of that stage, you'll progressively be able to increase your range and damage. Critical's cards, yellow crystals, red stones, blue stones, green stones, blue stones, and spirits are all excellent compo items to pair with these weapons. The stones offer basic bonuses to your stats, and are all decently useful. The spirits' effects are present with all kills, regardless of character, so it's useful for extra damage, given that this character will not be facing damage as much. SP should be invested into DEX and STR almost exclusively, with MAG being worked on only to cover for the costs of the final sniper rifle, the Rail Gun 7, which can have the range of over 300. This beats the Submarine Shrine boss' range, and is powerful enough to potentially wipe the boss out in just a few shots. By the time you reach the Hunting Gun, however, the real hurt and pain are present if you pair a yellow crystal 5 and a Critical's card 5. You might end up seeing the delicious quad-digit damage numbers pop up. It's a satisfying sight, and even more so at the highest statistics, if you pull off a 5-digit damage shot. Such ridiculous amounts of per-shot power are what makes the Sniper weapons who satisfying to use. While the shotgunner can do more damage, they need to be up close and personal to do anything. The sniper can sit back and reap the rewards of damage without compromise. The basic Rifle 1 does 20-40 damage. It's able to one-shot most enemies on Opening street without any buffs, and can cleanly kill on Grassland 1, again with no buffs. The Sniper Rifle 3 deals 60-80 damage, and is found on the second Mist Grove stage, which means you need to get past the resistant White Roundhead Mushroom Boss in the previous stage. The Hunting Gun 5 is very powerful, dealing 140-160 damage without buffs. This damage escelates very quickly- investing in STR early on can let you deal ludicrous amounts of ranged damage. It is at this point where the Critical's Card/yellow crystal combo becomes so powerful. Quad-digit damage numbers should be plentiful. Finally, the ultimate Rail Gun 7 deals a monstrous 300-320 damage without buffs. You know what numbers will fly across the screen next. As a side note, its range trumps that of any other gun- either boost it further with a high-level Catapult's card, or keep this awesome range as is, and invest in your brilliant amounts of damage. 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